Podcast Summary: All Of It with Alison Stewart

Episode: Top TV: The Reluctant Traveler
Date: January 2, 2026
Guest: Eugene Levy

Episode Overview

This episode of All Of It centers on culture, travel, and personal transformation through the lens of Eugene Levy’s Apple TV documentary series, The Reluctant Traveler. Host Alison Stewart welcomes Levy to discuss how his famously travel-averse personality drives the show, what he's learned on his unexpected journeys, and how curiosity (or the lack thereof) shapes our perspective on the world. Listener calls add community perspectives on bucket lists, travel anxieties, and favorite destinations.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Eugene Levy’s Reluctance & Early Experiences with Travel

• Growing up in Hamilton, Ontario, Levy only traveled once a year to Crystal Beach, a modest lakeside resort near home.
  • [01:00] Eugene Levy: "We'd go to a place called Crystal beach, which was on Lake Erie. ...That was it. Not that it was a terrible vacation. ...That's what a holiday was."
• As an adult, Levy found the inconveniences of modern travel—security, jet lag, overpacked schedules—to be off-putting.
  • [01:54] Eugene Levy: "The sightseeing aspect... was almost borderline irritating because there were too many things planned in a day... You just wonder why you left home."
• He admits he used to be proud of not being a traveler, even as friends raved about their adventures.
  • [02:17] Eugene Levy: "...I was just kind of proud of the fact that, you know what? I'd rather not travel. Thank you."

The Origin and Transformation of The Reluctant Traveler

• Apple TV first pitched Levy a show about exotic hotels, not knowing his lack of wanderlust; Levy declined, but his candid conversation changed producers’ minds.
  • [04:37] Eugene Levy: "The conversation was... I was trying to inject a little humor... That's when they said...This is not what the show should be. This is what the show should be, this conversation. Somebody who doesn't love to travel, doing a travel show with him."
• Levy agreed only when he could be authentic—openly admitting discomfort and disinterest, instead of pretending to be an enthusiastic adventurer.
  • [05:36] Eugene Levy: "If I could be myself, I thought, okay, well, then there's an honesty here that I totally get."

Constructing Season Three: The Bucket List Approach

• Season three’s locations are built around experiences, not destinations—cultural moments like Day of the Dead in Mexico, St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland, and the K-wave in South Korea.
  • [06:29] Eugene Levy: "It wasn't so much a bucket list of locations per se, it was a bucket list of experiences... being in a country for a specific episodic event."
• Levy admits his show now prompts deeper reflection on age, mortality, and seizing the moment.
  • [07:46] Eugene Levy: "I'm at a stage in my life where this show kind of made sense... At least you can say you did it."

Personal Growth and Changing Attitudes Toward Travel

• Through the show, Levy recognizes the folly of forming opinions without experience and now values broadening his horizons—even if his tastes remain selective.
  • [09:18] Eugene Levy: "Even being able to say that, without getting off the couch and traveling, made no sense to me. It did at the time. Now it doesn't."
• He’s learned to approach new places with open-mindedness, focusing on gleaning his own impressions instead of relying on assumptions or secondhand information.
  • [10:46] Eugene Levy: "...the experience of making your own mind up in terms of whether you like it or how much you appreciate it, that's what I'm learning most on the show."

Audience Interaction: Bucket Lists and Travel Stories

• Callers share personal travel goals—one aiming for all 50 U.S. states, another combining music and textile interests in Scotland and Ireland.
• Levy responds enthusiastically, sharing insights from his own visits and highlighting the infectious joy of folk music and local traditions.
  • [12:32] Eugene Levy: "Scotland was an amazing destination... the music is quite exciting over there... Irish music is, you know, what do they call it? A toe tapper?"

Fun Facts and Cultural Observations

• Levy delights in surprising cultural tidbits, such as Vienna’s 200 formal balls in two months.
  • [13:31] Eugene Levy: "Vienna... They throw 200 formal balls in the span of two months a year."
  • [13:52] Eugene Levy: "I actually loved it. ...They kind of stick to tradition, and there was something about it in this day and age that I found kind of refreshing."

Memorable Places, Food, and Picky Eating

• Italy stands out as a personal favorite—warm people, beautiful country, prioritization of family, friends, and food.
  • [16:23] Eugene Levy: "Italy's one of my favorite spots... their priorities are family, friends, food, and work, in that order."
• Levy is a self-proclaimed “picky eater,” uncomfortable with uncooked or unconventional foods, which becomes a recurring theme (and source of humor) on the show.
  • [17:04] Eugene Levy: "I'm kind of... a meat and potatoes kind of guy. You know, I like my food cooked. Don't give me food that isn't cooked. ...I'm not a sushi eater."
• Notable culinary encounters:
  • Declined grasshoppers in Mexico ([18:06])
  • Unpleasant experience with undercooked reindeer in Finland ([18:36])
  • Tried a raw oyster in France, which lasted about "half a second" in his mouth ([18:24])

Reflections on Beauty and Nature

• Levy appreciates natural beauty, especially in places like Italy’s countryside and Canada’s Banff and Lake Louise.
  • [20:14] Eugene Levy: "Lake Louise. It's one of the most beautiful spots in the world. ...An emerald lake, set against the backdrop of the most majestic Rocky Mountains."

Canadian Identity and Rediscovering Home

• A homecoming episode in Vancouver with Michael Bublé was especially rewarding, allowing Levy to connect with his Canadian roots.
  • [19:13] Eugene Levy: "...it was nice being in my own backyard up in Canada... Vancouver was a fun episode. Had a lot of laughs... Michael Bublé... showed me the side of Vancouver that I hadn't seen before."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Why he was the "wrong" choice for a travel host:
  [05:16] Eugene Levy: “I’m not a curious person. I’ve got a low threshold for adventure. I think they’ve got the wrong person.”
• On changing perspective with age:
  [07:46] Eugene Levy: “At this age, I'm saying now... just do it, and then decide whether you liked it or not.”
• On food aversions and honesty:
  [18:08] Eugene Levy: "I did say no because I don't eat insects. ...Tried a raw oyster in France last year, and it was in my mouth and out in about a half a second."
• On making travel personal, not performative:
  [05:54] Eugene Levy: "If I could be myself... there's an honesty here that I totally get."
• On Italian philosophy:
  [16:24] Eugene Levy: "Their priorities are family, friends, food, and work, in that order. And I get that."

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Segment | |------------|------------------------------------------------------------| | 01:00 | Levy’s childhood travel memories—Crystal Beach, Ontario | | 03:17 | Emotional resistance to travel as an actor and homebody | | 04:37 | The show’s origin story and accidental conception | | 06:29 | Building the season's "bucket list" of experiences | | 07:46 | Discussion on aging, mortality, doing things "while you can"| | 09:18 | Growth and shifting perspectives on travel | | 10:46 | Learning to form personal judgments from new experiences | | 12:01 | Callers: Music, textiles, and magical destinations | | 13:31 | Vienna’s 200 balls and delight in tradition | | 14:19 | Callers: U.S. states bucket list and responses | | 15:13 | Southern U.S. hospitality and RV adventures | | 16:19 | Italian beauty and life philosophy | | 17:04 | "Picky eater" confessions and memorable food episodes | | 18:06 | Grasshoppers in Mexico, oysters in France, reindeer in Finland | | 19:13 | Experiences filming in Vancouver with Michael Bublé | | 20:14 | Canadian landscapes: Banff and Lake Louise |

Final Thoughts

Throughout the episode, The Reluctant Traveler’s unique premise shines: it is not about relentless wanderlust but rather honest, often humorous engagement with culture outside one’s comfort zone. For Eugene Levy—and vicariously for viewers—it’s less about seeking extraordinary places and more about the journey of broadening one’s perspective, embracing imperfections, and, sometimes, just saying “no” to grasshoppers.

For those curious about the world but ambivalent about the journey, this episode affirms that travel (literal and figurative) can be transformative, loved—or even merely endured—with a sense of humor and honesty.